Refugee Response Training

RedR has been supporting the response to the refugee crisis in Europe since September 2015, primarily by training volunteers and grassroots groups in the fundamentals of humanitarian principles and practice.

In September 2015, we ran three one-day training sessions in London and Cardiff, training over 80 volunteers, most of whom were working in Calais. The training included sessions on needs assessment, distribution, the Sphere standards, and accountability. "We aimed to help volunteers to work as efficiently and safely as possible - while respecting the dignity of the families and individuals they were assisting," explains Programme Manager Katie Robertson.

The success of these pilot courses helped to secure funding from the Humanitarian Leadership Academy, enabling us to train a further 100 volunteers through four two-day courses. This time, training took place in London, Belgrade, and Calais, and on the Greek island of Lesbos: on the front lines of the response, where it was needed most. This time, there was a focus on Child Safeguarding.

RedR began the second phase of the HLA-funded project in May 2016 with training taking place in locations along the Balkan route, including Slovenia, Macedonia and Croatia. At the same time, we received funding from the Stanley Thomas Johnson Foundation in April 2016 to deliver another ten two-day courses in some of the most revelant areas in Europe.

As a result of the Refugee Response Project, we have delivered 26 courses in seven different countries, providing 424 volunteers and aid workers with invaluable skills in refugee response.

Further to this, we have delivered tailor-made training courses to volunteers from Help Refugees.

Moria camp, Lesbos, Greece, February 2016.

One of the key things I took away from the training is about accountability. I am now far more conscious about the impact of my and others' actions with regards to delivering support and aid: making sure that I also look at the bigger picture and not just the immediate impact of our actions.

Dan Teuma

founder of CalAid and The Worldwide Tribe, trained by RedR in September 2015

Refugee Response Coordination Workshop

Throughout the project, RedR has been fortunate enough to train both grassroots volunteers and humanitarian professionals. However, during the training, we noticed a disconnect between these two groups. Therefore, on the 5th October 2016, RedR organised a ‘Coordination Workshop’ where representatives from both groups came together to discuss the importance of collaborating and coordinating their activities. Watch the video here!

We have trained 424 volunteers and aid workers responding to the crisis